But first, I’ll kick off this Thursday edition of the Daily Drive-Thru with the latest expansion for Uber’s self-driving taxi cabs.

Uber expands autonomous pilot program

Ride-hailing giant Uber has expanded the autonomous taxi pilot program launched in Pittsburgh earlier this year to another city and, surprise surprise, it picked San Francisco. Uber has begun shuttling people around its hometown next month using a fleet of self-driving Volvo XC90 SUVs.

In addition to being another step for Uber toward robotic global domination, this venture is also part of a $300 million partnership between Uber and Volvo in which the Swedish carmaker has agreed to develop autonomous vehicles and allow the Silicon Valley startup to essentially serve as a beta tester.

Just like the Pittsburgh program, these vehicles will have operators sitting behind the wheel should anything go wrong, but, as is clearly demonstrated in a commercial for service, their hands will be firmly off the steering wheel. Uber and other companies in the transportation would have stated, however, that once they can safely remove drivers altogether, they will do just that.

As for Volvo, it plans to put its self-driving vehicles in the hands of 100 civilians next month and have them be driven around the city of Gothenburg, Sweden to test real-world use of its technology.

Google unveils Waymo self-driving startup

Former Hyundai America CEO John Krafcik will lead Alphabet Inc's Waymo team.

(Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

In other automated car news, Google and parent company Alphabet Inc. have finally let their robotic car research program see the light of day. Once known by insiders as Google X, the program will now be known as Waymo, with its motto being “A new way forward in mobility.” Get it?

Daimler, BMW consider ride-sharing merger

BMW's ReachNow service has expanded its offerings in New York City.

(Jill Lotenberg)

Two of Germany’s biggest automakers are in talks to merge their car-sharing services. The alliance would combine BMW’s DriveNow (known as ReachNow in the U.S.) and Daimler’s Car2Go networks onto a common platform while allowing the two services to keep their respective brand names.

Both car-sharing services are primarily geared toward urban markets. Daimler, the parent company of the Mercedes-Benz brand, offers its two-seat Smart cars while BMW’s lineup features cars from its Mini brand as well as the 3 Series sedan and i3 plug-in electric hybrid vehicle. Combining resources is a move likely geared toward staving off other alternative mobility services, such as Uber and Lyft.

Daimler’s taxi cab service, Mytaxi, and its internet platform Moovel, as well as BMW’s ParkNow and Charge Now services, would also be included in the deal, according to Germany’s Manager Magazin.

New Traverse, Terrain to debut in Detroit

The 2017 Chevrolet Traverse will be replaced by a redesigned version of the three-row crossover SUV.

General Motors will begin the process of reinvigorating its aged crossover SUV lineup by introducing redesigned versions of the Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Terrain during the North American International Auto Show next month. The three-row Traverse and the smaller Terrain will play crucial roles for GM in the increasingly popular crossover market.

Neither vehicle has received an overhaul since 2009, which makes both ancient in the automotive world. The Wall Street Journal reports that the redesigns are expected to add $1,000 worth of profitability to both vehicles. GM has not commented on the report or released any information about the upcoming models of either crossover.

Assuming the report is true, these two vehicles would account for two of the 40 debuts expected to hit the convention floor at the Detroit show.

Lucid Motors releases Model S competitor

The Lucid Air electric vehicle boasts a 0 to 60 mph time of 2.5 seconds, 1,000 horsepower and a starting price of $100,000.

(Lucid)

For the first time, Tesla’s Model S might have a legitimate challenger in the luxury EV market. Lucid Motors, a fellow Bay Area startup, has been positioning itself to compete with Tesla since 2014, originally under the name Atieva. Now, it’s got a new identity and a vehicle on track for a 2018 release.

After teasing the vehicle at the Los Angeles Auto Show last month, Lucid took the cover off the Air, an all-electric sedan that boasts a single-charge range of 400 miles, a 0 to 60 mph time of 2.5 seconds and up to 1,000 horsepower.

While that last number might seem gaudy (because it is) it’s not impossible, just unnecessary. Unlike gasoline-powered engines, which need to build up to peak horsepower and go through a cycle of gears on the way, an electric motor’s full horsepower is available as soon as it’s turned on. Lucid hasn’t revealed much about the powertrain or the battery that will power the Air, only broad platitudes about it being a “unique approach” that offers “world-class performance.”

The Air will start at $100,000 when it goes into production in 2018, though Lucid is targeting a $65,000 starting price for future models.